Stockbroker Liability
Can I Sue My Stockbroker or the Brokerage Firm to Recover My Investment Losses?
Yes! When you opened your brokerage account, you likely signed an agreement binding you to arbitration as the exclusive remedy for claims of negligence, fraud, or other misconduct against your broker or the brokerage firm.
Through arbitration you can recover your investment losses. You also may be able to recover punitive damages and attorneys' fees. Our securities lawyers have recovered millions of dollars of clients' investment losses from many of the country's largest brokerage firms, including Merrill Lynch, Banc of America, Wachovia, Morgan Stanley, UBS, Raymond James, Prudential, JP Morgan Chase, Oppenheimer, Lehman Brothers, Deutsche Bank, and Credit Suisse. For a free consultation about your case, contact an experienced securities arbitration lawyer at Dimond Kaplan & Rothstein in Miami or West Palm Beach.
We represent investors in securities arbitrations throughout the United States to recover investment losses from negligent or even dishonest brokerage firms and stockbrokers. The following are examples of the kinds of brokerage firm and stockbroker liability cases that we handle:
- Unsuitability claims based on recommendations and sales of securities that are not consistent with your investment objectives or your risk tolerance
- Improper asset allocation or lack of diversification of the assets in your account
- Margin losses involving involuntary liquidations of securities to pay off amounts borrowed from the brokerage firm
- Churning based on trades made by the broker for the primary purpose of generating commissions
- Misrepresentation or nondisclosure of risks or other material information about an investment
- Unauthorized trading
- Other stockbroker misconduct ranging from failure to follow your instructions to outright theft of client funds
Since 2007, we have seen an increasing number of cases involving fixed-income products, including bond mutual funds, hedge funds, collateralized debt obligations (CDOs), subprime mortgage, derivatives and auction rate securities. In many cases, the risks involved in these securities were misrepresented, inadequately explained or entirely undisclosed; sometimes the brokers themselves did not even understand the investments.
Securities arbitration cases are administered by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). Arbitration is similar to a court proceeding in that lawyers introduce evidence through examinations of witnesses. Arbitration differs from court, however, because it is private, utilizes arbitrators rather than a judge and a jury, and generally is faster and less expensive than a court proceeding.
Our experience with securities arbitration cases all over the country can help you reach a satisfactory resolution of your claim through a negotiated settlement, a voluntary mediation, or a final arbitration decision. For a free consultation about your legal rights in securities arbitration, contact a lawyer at Dimond Kaplan & Rothstein in Miami or West Palm Beach.
